FEATURED NEWS STORY

Influential UO Anthropology Professor Dies

Philip D. Young, 76, died June 30, 2013 in Cottage Grove, Oregon. He was born in Chicago, Illinois on October 18, 1936 to Donald and Jean (Ftacek) Young. He served in the Army in The Panama Canal Zone. Phil was Professor Emeritus in Anthropology at the University of Oregon, Chair of the Department of Anthropology (1985-1989) and Director of International Studies (1992-1995). He authored and co-edited 6 books and wrote numerous scholarly articles published in English and Spanish. He continued to be deeply committed to his work until his recent passing. He was a noted cultural anthropologist, a Latin Americanist specializing in socioeconomic change, adaptation among small farmers, and language and culture relationships. He had over 40 years of experience as a researcher, teacher, consultant, field-training director, project evaluator, and administrator. His bond with Ngäbe friends and family always drew him back to Panama. He leaves a legacy in his scholarship, his students and colleagues and the many people he touched throughout the world. To those close to him, Phil will be remembered for his wit and sense of humor, his devilish smile, and his collection of artisan frogs. His wife, Kathleen Black, will scatter his ashes at the Oregon coast, where they spent many happy times together. He is survived by Kathy, sons John and Andy, daughters Aixa, Juanita, Tanya, grandchildren and great-grandchildren all of Eugene, and brother Jerry Young, who lives in California.

Distinguished Professor, Dr. Lynn Stephen, is one of thirteen outstanding members of the University of Oregon faculty have been selected to receive the Fund for Faculty Excellence Awards for AY 2014-15. The Fund for Faculty Excellence is designed to further the University’s strategic commitment to improving its academic quality and reputation by recognizing, supporting, and retaining world-class tenure-related faculty.

Latham Wood is receiving a $30,000 award from The Christensen Fund for the project “Defying Land Alienation: Living Indigenous Lifeways.” The Christensen Fund currently sponsors projects in Melanesia–specifically, in Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu, where Latham’s research is. It “focuses on fortifying and reasserting local culturally-based economies in the face of growing extractive industries, land conversion and a steady devaluation of traditional practices”. As part of his award, Latham will write a book and develop a film on the symbolic and social value of local foods in an effort to mitigate the social impacts of land alienation in the Vanuatu archipelago. The film and book will be distributed nationally in Vanuatu and regionally in Melanesia through MILDA (Melanesian Indigenous Land Defense Alliance). For more information on The Christensen Fund, click here. Congratulations, Latham!

Department Head and Professor Frances White, along with our graduate Dr. Michel Waller (now at COCC) are coauthors in a Nature article published this summer on aggression in chimps and bonobos. Click here if you would like to read the article. Dr. White was also featured on the UO website, which can be found here. Congratulations to them both!

Scott Fitzpatrick gives the Max Arthur Cohn and Sarah Waldstein Cohn Memorial Lecture in Santa Fe, NM. This event is a part of the National Archaeological Institute of America 2014 lecture series. To learn more about his lecture and the event itself, click here.

Are you worried about orangutans taking over the world? Need tips for surviving the inevitable Ape Apocalypse? This summer, Sawhorse Productions released videos about the possibility of a real Planet of the Apes….nonhuman Apes, that is…..featuring our own primatologist Frances White! The episodes are fun excursions into how to get in good with your new ape overlords, so make sure you check out the videos here, and here. Enjoy the whimsy, everyone!

Scott M. Fitzpatrick was recently nominated to the editorial board for the Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, published by Elsevier. Click here to check out the journal. Congratulations, Scott!

Associate Professor of Anthropology and Department Head Francis White has been designated as a Williams Fellow for this year.

The Tom and Carol Williams Fund for Undergraduate Education was established to provide financial support for initiatives that enhance the quality of the educational experience for undergraduate students at the University of Oregon. The Fellowship recognizes professors who have demonstrated an extraordinary commitment to undergraduate education by challenging their students academically, creating an engaged learning environment, striving to improve the learning process, and fostering interdepartmental collaboration.

The Edna English Trust has awarded two 2014 grants for archaeological research at the UO. The awards, channeled through the Oregon Community Foundation and administered by the Museum of Natural and Cultural History, were made to:

Dennis Jenkins and the Northern Great Basin Archaeological Field School ($3601) for the “Purchase of Equipment and Labor to Establish a Computerized “ARCHIE” Field Data Entry Network” which will provide UO archaeology students training in state-of-the-art computer-based data management methods in the field;

John T. O’Connor ($2455) for an “Archaeological Reconnaissance Survey of the Island of Niuafo’ou, Kingdom of Tonga.”

Congratulations to the recipients and many thanks to the Edna English Trust for its’ long-term support of archaeological research by Department of Anthropology graduate students and Museum of Natural and Cultural History staff.